The Pearl

The Pearl Questions

 How did Steinbeck’s description of the setting help set a vague, dreamlike mood for the beginning of this chapter? How did that mood correspond to Kino’s own mood as he dove for pearls?

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Steinbeck's description in the beginning of Chapter Two focuses on the traditions and hopes of a people. The village is stepped in custom..... tradition. The day is like many others, and although the sights are familiar, the atmosphere is hopeful and full of dreams, "The uncertain air  that magnified some things and blotted out others hung over the  whole Gulf so that all sights were unreal and vision could not be  trusted; so that sea and land had the sharp clarities and the vagueness of a dream."

In keeping with the mood of the setting, we envision Kino and Juana strolling down to the beach. On the way, Kino's thoughts are filled with the knowledge that he continues something that has been passed down from generation to generation. 

 

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The Pearl